Solihull Moors (THTS) The Minging to Winning Match Thread

[BeesKnees99]

My final thought is how desperately unfair this tinpot league really is.

To finish second on 86 points and end up with absolutely nothing is a travesty.

Playoffs are designed to afford those slightly further down the table a chance of snatching glory. Not to punish high achievers with a bullshit lottery.

It doesn’t excuse our unacceptable mentality today but it certainly rubs salt in the wounds.

[jamiefrbees]

My final thought is how desperately unfair this tinpot league really is.

To finish second on 86 points and end up with absolutely nothing is a travesty.

Playoffs are designed to afford those slightly further down the table a chance of snatching glory. Not to punish high achievers with a bullshit lottery.

It doesn’t excuse our unacceptable mentality today but it certainly rubs salt in the wounds.

And they're going to Wembley not once, but twice. Sickening

[Jdk103]

Looking at the teams confirmed for the league next year, it’s very winnable on paper. Have to go big this summer

[ninestein]

Looking at the teams confirmed for the league next year, it’s very winnable on paper. Have to go big this summer

The teams coming down don't frighten me. In my mind, FGR and Sutton are coming back to their natural levels. Chesterfield are gone, and one of the 3 remaining playoff contenders (who are a consistent pain to play against) will also go.

How strong the division is will largely depend on whether the other recent ex-league sides get their act together and mount a serious, consistent challenge. Southend, Oldham, Hartlepool and Rochdale.

Southend and Oldham will now lose their parachute payments having served 2 years outside the EFL.

[beew]

I just dozed off and coming back round genuinely wondered if I dreamt that game.

My reflections include that When they scored their first even said maybe they have scored too soon, that was a crap suggestion!

We just didn’t turn up, not sure anyone comes out with credit. Don’t get the Kanu love for today, when he was out injured felt we were more unpredictable going forward, today he did very little with a final ball but every outlet ball was to him. Stead should have started, Freeman not good enough, Pritchard not fit, why oh why was Gorman taken off.

Just gutted with our lack of performance

I totally agree.

We're a better balanced side without Kanu, and today it looked to me that our whole game plan was built around him. As much as he was bullied (without protection from the ref), he didn't really look like he was going anywhere.

Freeman was another Brennan put his trust in, a player who hasn't proved his fitness but a player with pedigree, a huge gamble, and it backfired badly.Pritchard wasn't fit. Brunt should of started, Stead should of started, Kabamba was totally isolated,

[Itsmeerc]

Brunt and Stead were apparently both not for enough to start having both picked up injuries

[markobee]

What thoughts? - other than those mentioned above.
It seemed to me that we were very easily knocked off our stride, right from the start of the match (or soon after), by the Solihull players' sheer physicality. The referee helped them here, as he was letting pretty well everything go - apart from throw-ins, which just had to be taken from the right place.
(The inconsistency of refereeing in the NL is very noticeable. Another ref would surely have booked 4 or 5 of their players; probably have then sent one off; and might have given us a penalty. Hard to know how managers adjust their tactics for this inconsistency. Perhaps Whing just thought that Christmas had come early.)
Dean will have known this was coming from Solihull, and will have prepared for it. But for whatever reason, it didn't work. We didn't match their strength. All our usual midfield creativity was negated. If key players (Pritchard, Stead, Brunt) were below-par, then it's more understandable. But understanding it doesn't help with the disappointment, the grief.
Better fitness management and recovery methods might be needed? Dean has commented in previous post-match videos about needing to strengthen resources here.
If, however, we really do have a problem - a psychological block - when faced with big games (and big crowds - Nice to see, by the way), then that's even more serious, and we need to get some resource in, to deal with that.

But although the season has ended in this failure, I'm very grateful that we have been playing at the top end of the Table rather than at the bottom end. Dean and the whole squad deserve huge credit for that.

[BGr]

Brennan will never get us promoted through the playoffs, his only hope is for us to win a title.

If Brennan guides us to the top 7 after 46 games, they should sack him and bring Mad Dog in.

[BEEGONE]

Looking at the teams confirmed for the league next year, it’s very winnable on paper. Have to go big this summer

This.

Big money coming into the club from 3rd party transfers. A 25 goal a season striker on a contract.

No big clubs coming up or down.

[northantsbee]

Scunny and Chelmsford who also finished second in the NLN and NLS also lost yesterday, but at least they made an effort

[John Hunt]

Waking up I wished the heavy overnight downpour I dreamt about was yesterday instead of today.

We were second on merit as we amassed our 4th highest points total I think I and more than everyone else bar Chesterfield.

I think the overall quality of the division was maybe not as strong as previous and the semi finalists may not be best equipped to cope with the football league next year.

I hope I am wrong. The football league will have new blood this season. We were the only team with football league pedigree.

Whoever wins the play offs deserve to be promoted. I hope they enjoy their moment as we have three times.

[john dockers shorts]

If someone had told me in 90 minutes the only time I'd get out of my seat would be half time I'd never of believed them!

I struggle to think of a game we didn't seem to do anything at all.

Oh well!

[Chainsaw]

Baffling result. Even their manager was baffled by it. DB was clutching at straws when he referred to the two missed efforts. They were half chances at best. All 14 players who took part were below their best. None of them emerged with credit. Our defence is our achilles heel and has been throughout the season. Whether it's individuals or the mix of players it needs upgrading. That would still have been the case even had we gone up. I'm glad this didn't happen at Wembley. That would have been worse. It'll be hard to forget this.

[wearebees]

Brunt and Stead were apparently both not for enough to start having both picked up injuries

Yet Pritchard with a bad back played and was awful. If Stead and Brunt were that injured they shouldn't have been on the bench.

[Nudger70]

It’s such a shame our biggest day for years went down with such a whimper. It was a great to see a big crowd with loads of youngsters all out for the day. For some of them their first game they might be traumatised even the weather turned on us. Just hope the squad and management team remains relatively intact. Just look at what happened after the 2020 playoffs although their were other factors involved.